Cake is back after a 6 year hiatus with their new album "Showroom of Compassion" that was released in January. This is their 6th full length album from the group. It was the first album for the band to debut on the Billboard Top 200.
Cake has been around since 1991. It's kind of hard to categorize their music. They are kind of a college rock, ska, punk, jazzy, funky collaboration of sounds. The album starts off really nice. I love the first song: Federal Funding. I think this song is the strongest on the album. Here it is below:
It's sardonic and mocking and has such a nice beat. My interpretation of the song is a lampoon of how poorly some Federal money is managed. "Take your colleagues out to dinner....You'll receive the Federal funding."
The thing that is hard about following a song like that...is that it's hard. And unfortunately, the new album goes down from there. The next song is "Long Time" and has an unusual funky beat that is infectious. I like it as well, but the bar is high because of the first song. Then there are yawners like "What's Now Is Now" and "Mustache Man (Wasted)." Then there is the instrumental "Teenage Pregnancy" that is both daring and simple. I enjoyed the horns in the song. They mesh well with the other instruments.
The rest of the songs are good and bad. "Bound Away" is probably the gem in the mix and has a solid orchestration and drifting quality that is alluring and presciently ethereal, examining death and the aimless wanderer. Lead singer John McCrea's sings, "Seconds turn to minutes, minutes turn to hours, Hours give you a lifetime and a grave with pink flowers."
We end on "Italian Guy." It's not an especially endearing song, but it's a good way to end the album. It has a solid sound, but leaves you wanting more.
Overall:
The album is a solid work overall. There are some songs that will stick with you, and others that wont'. I would encourage you to listen to the whole thing at least twice the whole way through to give it a chance. There are some songs that aren't very good, but the album is listenable and if you are a huge Cake fan, you will enjoy it.
-Soren Nieminen
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Madison's summer music festival season kicks off this weekend with Brat Fest at Willow Island, where there are more bands than you can shake a bratwurst at! Check out the Brat Fest website to plan your itinerary.
Next up is the Marquette...
John Fogerty is making the talk show rounds this week, stopping in to see David Letterman Tuesday and Wednesday, and the ladies of "The View" on Thursday.
He's promoting his new album, "Wrote a Song For Everyone" which comes out next Tuesday...
It's a miracle that both Jonathan and KItty wanted to hear Barry Manilow this morning. They were not alone. Plenty of Fanilow's called in to vote yes. One caller claimed to have seen Manilow in concert 25 times!
The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, it is another gorgeous Monday, fit for another great show at the Crystal Corner tonight.
Through locking ourselves in the barn on Irish Lane, tossing some ideas around, as well as a few choice beverages to...
Hey everybody, we were thrown for a loop by the twist this week, but were able to make one of our "oldie but a goldie" songs fit the mold.
We have a few songs that we have played consistently over the years, and we are very happy that we will be...
We just received word of what this weeks twist is, and...oh boy. We need to take our "signature song" and cut it to only 2:30 without going over. Amberstein does not simply play 2:30 versions of our songs...so this could be interesting.
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In 1984, Rockwell rose to number 2 for 3 weeks in 1984 with "Somebody's Watching Me." The backup singer for the song was Michael Jackson. How did Rockwell get Jackson to help him? Well, Rockwell's real name is Kennedy William Gordy and he...
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The singer sounds like a raspy blues dude who's definitely been around the block a few times....but surprisingly, Jamie N. Commons is only 23 years old!
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